"To The Law And To The Testimony!"

by J. MCCORMICK | Category: General | Mar 1960

It was a dark day in the history of Judah, when, in the reign of Ahaz "It was told the house of David, saying, Syria is confederate with Ephraim. And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the forest are moved with the wind" (Isaiah 7. 2). Syria and Ephraim had counselled evil against Judah, to make a breach therein and set up a king of their own choice. God's future purposes were bound up with Judah as is seen in many passages of Scripture.

"But thou, Bethlehem Ephrathah, which art little to be among the thousands of Judah, out of thee shall One come forth unto Me that is to be Ruler in Israel; whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting" (Micah 5.2).

We know Ahaz and his people had sinned grievously; nevertheless, "The counsel of the LORD standeth fast for ever,

The thoughts of His heart to all generations" (Psalm 33.11),

The LORD bringeth the counsel of the nations to nought:

He maketh the thoughts of the peoples to be of none effect"

(Psalm 33.10).

This conspiracy was therefore doomed to failure, they had not taken God into account. The word through Isaiah (chapter 7) to Ahaz was, "Take heed, and be quiet; fear not, neither let thine heart be faint, because of these two tails of smoking firebrands." "Thus saith the Lord GOD, It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass" (verses 4, 7). The downfall of Syria and Ephraim is predicted, yet there is a condition laid down as the basis for the establishment of Judah.

"If ye wilt not believe, surely ye shall not be established" (verse 9).

The same principle applies to God's remnant people today, in whom God's present purposes are seen, and the warning is given.

"Today if ye shall hear His voice, harden not your hearts."

"Take heed, brethren, lest haply there shall be in any one of you an evil heart of unbelief, in falling away from the living God" (Hebrews 3.7, 12).

The fulfilment, and establishment of God's purposes in His together people today are conditional upon the belief of that people in the truth which has been committed to them for obedience. In this there is always the possibility of failure, hence the words-" whose house are we, if we hold fast," and "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope that it waver not; for He is faithful that promised" (Hebrews 3.6, 10.28). Many are the warnings given to God's people in the epistle to the Hebrews, lest they should drift away from the things that were heard, fall away from the truth and the house of God, and shrink back from the path of obedience to a wasted life.

Ahaz is requested by God to ask for a sight such as would strengthen his faith : "Ask it either in the depth, or in the height above. But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the LORD," thus confirming his willing unbelief. Ahaz looked to the power of Assyria for help and deliverance rather than depend upon the word and power of the invisible God. By doing so he sealed his own doom and that of his people by robbing the house of God of its treasures, substituting another kind of altar, and changing the pattern of things which David had been made to understand in writing from the hand of the LORD. (eg. 2 Kings 16 with 1 Chronicles 28.11-19). Unbelief is capable of all this and more. Let us ponder well the paths of our feet, and keep our hearts with all diligence.

Nevertheless, God gave Ahaz a sign which pointed forward to One who would make His entry into this world by the miracle of incarnation, One who would never fail, who trusted from His birth (Psalm 22.9), "the Author and Perfecter of our faith" (Hebrews 12.2). God's purposes will find completion through Him who is" Immanuel, God with us," who shall sit upon the throne of His father David." Let us remember also that God has given us a strong encouragement by two immutable things in which it is impossible for God to lie-His word and oath-to lay hold of the hope set before us. Our hope is none other than Immanuel who has gone into God's presence in the power of an endless life for us. We lay hold of this hope by faith, assured of His ability to save to the uttermost them that draw near unto God through Him-a priest by oath.

In spite of God's promise and sign, Ahaz continued in unbelief, and many of the people of Judah were influenced by the visible might of Rezin and Remaliah's son, they sided with the enemy, and became traitors to the cause of God (Isaiah 8.6). They did not believe and therefore they were not established. The hordes of Assyria in whom they had aforetime trusted would therefore become the instruments of judgement.

"And he shall sweep onward into Judah; he shall overflow and pass through ; he shalt reach even to the neck ; and the stretching out of his wings shall fill the breadth of thy land, 0 Imnanuel" (Isaiah 8.8).

Unbelief, surrender and compromise will reap their reward Judah did not escape, and how shall we escape who have heard words from the Lord and His apostles concerning God's house and truth, the place of His rest in this lawless scene, if we fail to enter in because of unbelief? Such neglect will bring us into judgement as servants, and as a people. There is always the danger of looking at the vast evangelical movements of the day which surround us, and of the temptation to join their forces, but this can Only be done by surrendering the truth, of yielding our position to the enemy, for let us remember that the great sectarian movements are not of God, they are systems of human origin. There is but one basis of divine unity in the Scriptures as enunciated by the Lord in His prayer in John 17. 17: "Sanctify them in the truth: Thy word is truth." It is upon this basis alone that churches of God and the house of God came into existence. (See Acts 2.41, 42, Hebrews 3.6, etc.) We do not decry the earnestness, zeal and personal godliness of many dear children of God enmeshed in sectarian associations, or the conversions which take place among those who obviously do not conform to the Lord's teaching collectively. We speak of the systems which have no divine origin, which in many cases are nothing more than human devices to pursue a given purpose, truth being thrown to the winds.

In Isaiah's day the vast majority were wrong, but the faithful remnant were right. The counsel and words of the great confederacy would be brought to nought, but said Isaiah, "God is with us" (8.10, 11), For the LORD spake thus to me with a strong hand (with strength of hand, R.V.M.), and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people." The word of the LORD to the faithful was,

"The LORD of hosts, Him shall ye sanctify; and let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread" (Isaiah 8.18).

To those who separated themselves from the majority, and walked not in the way of this people, i.e., those who joined hands in unbelief and disregard of God's word: to the minority, the faithful remnant, who sanctified the LORD of hosts, and feared Him, came the promise given, "And He shall be for a sanctuary." It has ever been true that, Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee " (Isaiah 26.8). In the midst of adversity and opposition they could say-" God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble ... The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge" (Psalm 46).

The little flock, who have sanctified Christ as Lord in their hearts, who in this day of religious confederacy and spiritual lawlessness stand fast in the faith in obedience to their One Lord, may know the comfort of His word "Fear not, little flock ; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom" (Luke 12.32). The words of Jehoshaphat are pertinent,

" Believe in the Lord your Gad, so shall ye be established" (2 Chronicles 20.20).

Over against which are the words to Ahaz and Judah,

"If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established " (Isaiah 7.9).

He who would be a sanctuary to the faithful, would be for a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence to the unbelieving of both the houses of Israel. Peter says, " They stumble at the word, being disobedient " (1 Peter 2.8). There is still today a small minority who set apart Christ as Lord in their hearts, who associate themselves with the One who was rejected of men, but who has been enthroned by God in Zion and endowed with all authority in heaven and on earth.

"For you therefore which believe is the preciousness (honour, R.V.M.)"

(1 Peter 2.7).

There was a little band of faithful disciples in that far-off day who were for signs and wonders in Israel from the LORD of hosts, whose testimony in separation was to be a manifest living voice to the majority of the unfaithful, and it is. so today. The very fact of the existence of a collective people gathered under the Lordship of Christ in churches of God, in the house of God, is a standing witness to the truth of God to all God's children who are scattered abroad in the sects of Christendom.

The distinctive feature of the testimony in that day was this

Bind thou up the testimony, seal the law among My disciples"

(Isaiah 8.16).

There were to be no additions to, no deletions from, that which had been sealed and committed to them. It was to be the standard of life and practice, and the means by which all other things were to be judged.

"To the law and to the testimony if they speak not according to this word, surely there is no morning for them" (Isaiah 8.20).

Today there is but " one faith" (Ephesians 4.5)," the faith which was once for all delivered unto the saints " (Jude 8). This is the sum total of all the commandments given by the Lord and His apostles for the obedience of God's collective people. This admits of neither addition nor deletion, it is the sealed law of New Testament times.

While there were bright days and experiences, there were also dark days during the period in which Isaiah prophesied. We, too, do well to take heed to the inspired word, for

"The Spirit saith expressly, that in later times some shall fall away

from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils (demons, R.V.M.), through the hypocrisy of men that speak lies" (1 Timothy 4.1, 2).

"The time will come when they will not endure the sound doctrine; but, having itching ears, will heap to themselves teachers after their own lusts and will turn away their ears from the truth" (2 Timothy 4.8).

The call of God is clear to all who are valiant for the truth:

"Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong"

(1 Corinthians 16.18).

Isaiah points forward to the coming of the Messiah to rule and reign in righteousness, when all wrongs will be righted. We too are pointed forward to the coming of our Saviour from heaven, when at the judgement-seat of Christ each one will "receive the things done in the body, according to what he hath done, whether it be good or bad" (2 Corinthians 5.10). All wrongs will yet be righted for those who have taken their place with Christ in this scene of His rejection.

"Howbeit that which ye have, hold fast till I come" (Revelation 2.25).

J. MCCORMICK | Mar 1960
General